LONDON: A global shortage of chickpeas is forcing up the price of hummus in the UK, with other markets likely to see similar pressures.
The price of a tub of hummus in British shops has soared by almost 30 percent, according to experts, with chickpea shortages flagged as the main issue, although some suppliers are also blaming supermarkets.
“Chickpea prices increased during 2017 and remain high. Demand is strong from every market and currently there isn’t enough supply to go around. This is driven by poor crops in some of the main producing origin nations over the past 12 months,” Tasneem Backhouse, joint managing director at EHL Ingredients, told The Grocer.
The hike in prices comes after last year’s UK hummus crisis, in which a factory default resulted in “fizzy, metallic-tasting” spread that had to be pulled from shelves after complaints from shoppers.
Twitter fans have reacted to the hummus hike news, with Lilesosanna Flower writing: “Chickpea crises vegans start to panic!“
But comedian Stephen Fry seemed more concerned, reacting to the news with just one line: “Noooooooooo!”